Hero photograph
Volleyball Girls Senior A
 
Photo by Burnside High School

Volleyball

- Chloe Mikaera, Captain Senior A Girls Volleyball - Jake Ceelan-Thomas, Captain Senior A Boys Volleyball —

A very successful year, with the Senior Girls A team winning Canterbury and South Island Secondary Schools' Championships and coming 3rd at NZ Secondary Schools' Championships. The Senior Boys A team came second at the Canterbury Secondary Schools' Championships and the Junior A Girls came 2nd at the Canterbury Junior Secondary Schools' Championships.

2017 was a really good year again for Burnside High Girls Volleyball. As a team we had to work really hard throughout the season as we lost a few influential players from 2016.  We definitely proved that we were a hard-working team through the results of our season but also the number of players making rep teams for Canterbury, South Island and New Zealand. 

As a team we won South Islands in March without our coach, Mr Ryburn, and two key players players competing at another tournament. We regrouped for Canterbury Champs and came 1st after an exciting game against St Andrews in the finals, making us top seed leading into Nationals. At Canterbury Champs, Chloe Mikaera and Libby Collett were named in the Tournament Team. 

Nationals held in Palmerston North were tough. All the girls played their absolute best and were rewarded with bronze. This was a great result with Chloe Mikaera and Marlene Jahn named in the Tournament Team. 

This team were an awesome group of people who all showed hard working ethics and great attitudes towards the team and volleyball. 

In terms of individual results, we had a number of people in the Canterbury rep teams - Libby Collett, Talitha Bootsma, Rosalie Richards, Tahlia Stark and Chloe Mikaera who played at IPC in Wellington. Eva Rewiri made the South Island team that travelled to Hamilton. Finally Libby Collett and Chloe Mikaera made the New Zealand Women's team and travelled to China for the Asian Champs, alongside Women's coach Sam Ryburn. 

It was an honour for all of the players who got to play in the team this year and travel to the various different cities and countries to play the sport we all love. We’re very excited for the year group coming through to volleyball next year as they are a talented bunch. 

In November, the Year 10A Girls team made the finals at the Canterbury Junior Champs losing marginally to St Andrews to be awarded silver. They had three named in the Tournament Team - Sila Morris, Payton Anderson and Emily Smith.

We are sad to have such a large number of talented players leave the team next year but we wish them all good luck:- Rosalie Richards, Kaylee Johnson, Tsubasa Nisbet, Marlene Jahn and Chloe Mikaera. 

A huge thank you goes out to coach Sam Ryburn for the countless hours and effort he puts into the Burnside Volleyball Programme. We appreciate everything he does for us.

It was a great year for Burnside Volleyball and I was thankful to be a part of it. 

SENIOR BOYS

This year has been a year full of ups and ups for the Burnside High Boys Senior Volleyball team. Finally making it to a Canterbury Secondary Schools' final, where they showed the prowess and dexterity that a young group of mature handsome males are capable of, they placed 2nd in Canterbury, top 20 in New Zealand and overall are looking to be on a roller-coaster upwards. Many thanks to Sam Ryburn who made the whole volleyball programme function smoothly, we are all very grateful.